Thursday, 24 May 2018, a rainy, dark and cold day turned into something spectacular as FunDza was blessed with a visit from six ambitious and driven young girls from Christel House. FunDza worked hard in preparing for the big day in order to make the girls comfortable and enjoy their ‘first day at work’. The girls are from some of Cape Town’s disadvantaged communities, e.g. Langa, Athlone and Mannenberg. It was incredible to hear the girls express their aspirations for future careers with pride and determination: lawyers, doctors, journalists in the mix.
Since we have lunchtime videos to watch and discuss various interesting talks, we decided to host the almost-weekly event on this day. So, the girls were fortunate to have been able to join us in watching the video in which Michelle Obama spoke about the importance of education for girls. Her message resonated with Cell C’s ‘Bring a girl child to work’ day initiative. It was also heart-warming to know that as young as the girls were, they possessed incredible insight with regards to matters relating to women. The girls clearly know about their rights, no doubt about that.
The girls also had an opportunity to do a creative writing workshop with Sonja Kruse, one of FunDza’s facilitators. The girls thoroughly enjoyed this exercise. The learners also had an opportunity to job shadow the editing team, where FunDza’s mobi-site was explored in great detail.
Apart from the serious stuff, laughter, excitement and joy echoed throughout the office, making the day worthwhile for FunDza staff members. The buzz around the office was thoroughly enjoyed by everyone including the girls. This sentiment was expressed by the girls when I dropped them back at school, they asked: Why are you taking us back so early?! I’m happy to say that we have gained volunteers during school holidays as the girls expressed interesting in coming to work for FunDza when school closes.
Thank you Christel House for allowing the girls to come visit FunDza. Also thanks to Cell C for creating such an awesome initiative and a big thank you to the six girls for an amazing visit. You are indeed welcome to come to FunDza anytime.